


Goro Is A Theatrical Dork

by AngelicAmal



Category: Persona 5
Genre: This is for me and my friend only, no one else will care anyway, so anyway goro is a lil bitch and i love him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-07
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-07-27 09:19:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16216085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelicAmal/pseuds/AngelicAmal





	Goro Is A Theatrical Dork

“Come on, this way!”

Joker’s command is heard by the whole group, and all the phantom thieves run after their leader through a wide open door. Amal looks up and notices steam escape several pipes above their head. If this was a real life ship, she would be worried about their safety.

The group has been fighting shadows for what felt like hours. Knowing how differently time worked here, that feeling could be right. Amal did her best to heal everyone, but even she was running low on power. She figured that soon, she’ll need to ask Joker for some restorative items if she wants to keep healing everyone.

Suddenly, Joker stops and turns around. Puzzled, everyone else stops dead in their tracks as well, turning back to see what it is that Joker had noticed. Amal’s gaze turns to their leader, who raised his head to look at something above them. Following suit, Amal turns her gaze upwards and gasps.

On top of one of the pipes stands a young man. He wears white pants and a white buttoned up jacket, with hints of gold and red. A short red cape fluttered behind him as he jumped down to their level. His gloved hands touched the ground before the man quickly straightened up, his red mask unmistakable in the light. His eyes are locked on Joker as he takes a few steps towards the group, while everyone else’s gaze is locked onto him.

“Long time no see.” He says, and hearing his voice after so long makes Amal want to burst into tears. She couldn’t believe that _this_ person was the one who technically killed Joker.

“You..?!” Ryuji booms, and April has to place a hand on his shoulder to stop him from approaching the masked man.

“Why is he here…?!” Comes Futaba’s voice, not aggressive like Ryuji’s was but clearly confused.

“Hmph…I’m impressed that you managed to deceive me. It seems that I underestimated your abilities.” The young man continues talking to Joker, as if he didn’t hear a word Ryuji or Futaba said. “You truly are interesting…Quiet, yet possessing the courage and determination to take action. Under different circumstances, we could have been great rivals…or perhaps even friends.”

“We’re already rivals.” Joker points out, a statement that makes the red-caped man laugh.

“How wonderful!” he comments, smirking as he does. “You don’t allow yourself to be enslaved by such things as human relations or past selves…” he continues. “And so, your heart is always free. The exact opposite of mine. To be honest, I’m envious. I wonder why we couldn’t have met a few years earlier, Joker…”

Joker doesn’t say anything, and Amal can’t handle being quiet much longer. “Goro…please.” She hesitates. She didn’t want to make the situation worse. “Please. Stop this. We don’t have to fight.”

“Akechi…” Ann’s voice is heard, clearly upset. Akechi’s gaze shifts to Amal for a second, and she can see his eyes soften for a split second before he’s gazing at Joker once again. “Well, it’s no use talking in hypotheticals. That didn’t happen in reality.”

“Akechi!” Makoto raises her voice. “Why are you cooperating with someone like Shido?! Don’t you see what his palace looks like?! His true nature is-“

“Cooperating…?” Akechi cuts her off, crossing his arms over his chest. “What are you talking about? I don’t care for Shido, or this country. All this is to make Masayoshi Shido…my father…acknowledge me. Then exact revenge on him.”

Everyone simultaneously gasps. Masayoshi Shido…the person behind this whole thing…was Goro’s father?! Amal opened her mouth to question Goro, but Yusuke got there before her. “Shido is your father…!?” he asks in surprise, voicing the question they all had on their mind. Out of the corner of her eye, Amal could see April cover her mouth in shock. Her eyes portrayed the pain she must’ve felt at the moment. Amal didn’t want to know what her own eyes portrayed. Nothing good, she guessed.

“Remember I said before, how my mother had been in a relationship with some good-for-nothing man?” Akechi asked. “So I’m his bastard child. My very existence is nothing but a scandal…”

“Goro…” Amal couldn’t help but say his name, weakly. Said boy didn’t look like he heard her.

“My mother’s life turned for the worst after she had me…and died. I was a cursed child for her too.”

“That’s horrible…” Ann says, looking down at the ground. When Amal looked at her, she could see the sadness in her eyes. Goro continued talking.

“I resented him, but he was already a high-ranking official by then. A kid like me could do nothing. But…” he smirks, and Amal can feel her stomach fill with knots. “That’s when it happened!”

Goro chuckles, raising his arms above his head and tilting his head back to look at the ceiling. “That’s when I learned about the cognitive world!” he looks back down, lowering his arms while clenching his fists angrily. “Someone, be it god or demon, gave me a chance! I couldn’t contain my laughter..!”

“You son of a…!” Ryuji growls, while everyone apart from April and Amal gets in a defensive position. Amal wasn’t sure what was going on with her best friend, but she knew that April must’ve felt at least as numb as her. She wished that this was all just a bad dream.

“Who cares? My targets were all doing the same damn thing in this eat or be eaten world. All I did was remove their evil from society. How is that any different than the Phantom Thieves?”

“We’re not murderers!” Ann shouts, clearly angry at the statement.

“You know that’s not true, Akechi.” Comes April’s voice, and for a moment Goro turns towards the voice. “The Phantom Thieves’ goal is only to restore things to how they were before. We never aimed to murder anyone.”

“So what?!” Akechi shouts, making April take a step back. Watching this made Amal’s heart ache. “Masayoshi Shido is finally within my grasp! Once he reaches the apex of his power and acknowledges me, I’m going to whisper in his ear…I will tell him the truth of who I really am!” he waves his arm to the side. “And that’s when I – an utter disgrace to the world – will rule over him. I will prevail!”

“What a warped thought…it’s almost pitiable.” Yusuke comments, looking down at the floor.

“Goro…”Amal pleads. “Goro, please…you’re wrong. You’re not a disgrace at all…you’re-“

“Shut up!” he growls, his brown eyes finally focusing on her. “What do you know?”

“I…” Amal hesitates, feeling tears well up in her eyes. “I just-“

“In just a few weeks, my plan would have come to fruition…! But no, you just had to interfere…!” he points at Joker, seething with anger. “I can still take it back though. I’ll just need to kill you all.”

“Hmph.” Morgana huffs. “We won’t get killed for something like that. You talk big, but you’re really nothing more than a little kid throwing a temper tantrum!”

“Don’t lecture me you piece of shit…” Goro clenches his teeth. “I am going to personally thrust Masayoshi Shido into a living hell. So, Joker…rest easy and die.”

“Think you can really do it?” Joker challenges him, and Amal wishes once again that this would all just turn out to be a bad nightmare.

Goro nods, clearly confident in his abilities.“..Yes. I’ll do it better than you could ever imagine. That is, once I get rid of you.”

“You sure sound confident, but don’t go pressin’ your luck.” Ryuji warns Goro. “We already know all your tricks from back when you were workin’ with us.”

“Joker…how could you be so successful while having such an idiot as your partner?” Akechi smirks, tilting his head ever so slightly. He knew how to get under Ryuji’s skin.

Ryuji shouts, “Huh?! Quit bluffin’!”

“It’s no bluff.” Makoto’s calm voice states, eyes trained on Goro. “If he truly is behind the mental shutdowns, he’s likely only shown us a fraction of his strength.

Goro chuckles quietly, “I’ll tell you all about my true power…while you die.” He grins. “You can take that knowledge with you to the grave.”

At that moment, two shadows appear behind Akechi, growling and groaning like they always do. Akechi motions for them to come forward, eyes never leaving Joker’s. “Kill them!”

“Mona, Queen, Angel, you’re with me. Everyone else, stay back.”

“No.”

“No?” Joker blinks, looking behind him at his teammate. “What do you mean no? This isn’t a game, Angel.”

“I know exactly what it is.” April snaps. Her eyes however, are locked on Goro. “I’m not going to fight you, Goro.”

“Are you pitying me?” he growls. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’ll need all the help you can get to defeat me!”

“I said, no.” April crosses her arms over her chest, glaring at the brunette boy. “I only fight those that are evil, Goro. And you…you are not evil.”

“Heh, suit yourself.” Goro smirks. “I’ll just kill you last.”

Joker sighs. “Alright, Angel. I get it.” He turns to Yusuke. “Fox, get in here.”

“Right.”

“The mental shutdowns aren’t the only incidents people are talking about.” Goro grins. “There are also the breakdowns that cause people to turn psychotic, creating accidents and scandals…those cannot be explained unless the true culprit has the power to make people’s hearts psychotic…” he snickers, and Amal finds herself stepping closer to April, seeking some sort of comfort from the older girl. Who, naturally provides it by wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “That’s right! It’s my power – one that you don’t have!”

“He’s gonna try something…!” Futaba warns.

“Allow me to show you!” he brings his hand to his mask, calling forth his persona. A tall, thin-looking creature so unlike the Robin Hood Amal remembered.

“That’s…not Robin Hood.” She whispers, eyes wide. “What is that persona?!”

A ripple-like wave emits from the persona, touching the shadows standing behind Akechi. As soon as it does, the two shadows turn black, red veins appearing over their bodies. Amal hears April gasp, and she feels the eldest tighten her grip on her shoulder.

“What was that?!” Futaba yells. “That wasn’t Robin Hood…Could it have been a different persona?”

“Even the feeblest existence can gain tremendous power once the chains on its heart are broken. You better not underestimate these two.” Goro warns before jumping back, away from the fight.

“What did Akechi do?! The enemies are way stronger now!” Futaba comments, but Joker doesn’t reply. He focuses on fighting the shadows, with Mona, Queen and Fox supporting him.

Ryuji growls, muttering curse words under his breath. While everyone else watches the fight, Amal can’t help but stare at Goro standing in the back, watching the fight closely as well. She clutches at her chest, over her heart. “Goro…” she frowns. “Why didn’t you tell me before…? Why…” she breaths shakily, clutching at her heart tighter. “Why did you just stay quiet?”

 

~A few months earlier~

 

“Amal, is that you?”

Amal stops in her tracks, turning around at the call of her name. “Akechi!” she smiles up at the brunette boy. “Hey! What brings you to a sweets shop?”

The boy laughs, tilting his head. “Well, I do enjoy sweets occasionally.” He smiles. “And you? Buying anything?”

Amal nods, pointing to a big jar full of gummy snakes. “I was going to get some gummies. You like them?”

“Hmm…to be honest with you, I’ve never tried any. I mostly eat things like waffles, cookies and-“

“Pancakes, right?”

Goro blinks in surprise, but soon relaxes. He chuckles. “That’s right. How did you know?”

“Oh, you know…” she grins. “Women’s intuition.”

“Uh…huh.” Goro nods, clearly still confused. “Well…how about I get you those gummies? My treat.”

“What? No, you don’t have to do that. I can-“

“In return…” he smiles. “You let me try some. Deal?”

Amal’s cheeks flush. Damn his adorable smile! “Oh, uh…i-if that’s how it is…s-sure.”

Goro continues smiling, paying no mind to the shorter girls’ stuttering. “Great!”

Once they get the gummies, as well as some cookies for Goro to take home with him, the two walk side by side. Amal holds her bag of gummies to her chest with one arm, her free hand grabbing gummies from inside and sticking them in her mouth, slowly pulling the snake-like sweet into her mouth like she liked to do, Goro watching her closely. “Why…do you do that?”

“Hm? Do what?”

“Put them in your mouth and let them dangle there.”

“Cause it’s fun.”

“Fun?”

“Yeah! Try it.”

Goro blinks. “What? No, thank you. I’d rather put the whole thing in.”

“Eh?” Amal laughs. “Listen, I know you’re proper Mr.Detective….but you’re still a teenager. It’s alright to have fun. No one cares anyway.”

“No one…cares?”

“Of course not. Well, except me. I’ll appreciate you doing it very much.” She turns to him, pouting. “Pretty please?”

How could he say no to those eyes?

“Alright. But only the one.” He puts his hand in the bag of gummies, grabbing one between his fingers before bringing it to his mouth.

By now, the two of them were walking on a fairly empty street. There were a few cars passing by, but otherwise no people around. That made Goro relax a bit. He chews on the sweet slowly, eyes focused on the part still hanging outside of his mouth.

“Pfft.” Amal’s laughter makes him look up. “You look adorable.” She tells him, and only then does he notice the phone in her hand. “I had to take a picture. Sorry. I promise I won’t show anyone.”

Goro pulls the rest of the snake up, chewing it and swallowing before replying. “That’s alright. These are actually quite nice. They’re very sweet.”

“Told ya!”

Grinning, Goro grabs another one from the bag, sticking it in his mouth. Amal gasps. “Hey! You only said you’ll try it, not eat it!”

Goro smirks at her, shrugging his shoulders as if to tell her he couldn’t do anything about it.

“Oh?” she smirks. “Well then. You’ll have to make up to it. Come here.” She gestures for him to lean in. Confused but trusting her not to do anything bad, Goro leans in closer to her face.

Immedietly, Amal leans in inches away from his face, biting on the other end of the candy. She pulls on it, touching her lips to Goro’s quickly before pulling back. She chews slowly, a bright smile covering her face meanwhile. “There!” she laughs. “Now we’re even.”

Goro’s face burns. He can’t see it, but he knows its red. He touches his lips, eyes wide with surprise and shock. “W-Wha…?”

Amal laughs, winking at him. “You’ll think twice before stealing candy again, Mr.Detective.”

Goro still can’t function. He brushes a finger over his lips. Never, not in a thousand years, did he expect that! “I-What did- Huh?!” he blinks. “That…did you just…!”

Before he can properly ask her his question, his phone rings. He makes a ‘tch’ sound, pulling it out of his pocket. ‘Shido’ flashes on the screen, and he quickly presses the red button on his screen, ending the call.

She couldn’t have seen it, could she?

“Who was that? Work?”

“Uh…y-yeah.” He chuckles. “I have to go. Thank you for the candy.” He smiles. “I…I’ll see you later, Amal.”

“Alright, Goro.”

“G-Goro?”

“Do you mind? I like calling you Goro.”

“…do what you want.”

“Yay! Thank you! See you later, Goro!”

As Amal turns around and starts to leave, Goro raises his fingers to his lips again. “A…kiss, huh.” He brushes his lips, cheeks flushing. “What an idiot.”

 

~Now~

 

While Amal was remember the kiss that day, the fight suddenly stops. When Amal looks to where her friends were fighting, she sees that they have defeated the shadows, and that Goro was in front of Joker again.

“Tch, well done.” He says slowly, his grip on his sword tightening.

“That power to makes others turn psychotic…He used it on actual people…?” Futaba asks, though she doesn’t ask anyone in particular. “This guy’s out of his mind…!”

“Heh. Of course I didn’t expect you to be defeated by them.” Goro says, shrugging. “You have deceived me and escaped death, after all. I wouldn’t give up my chance to massacre you with my own two hands…!”

“He’s coming…brace yourselves!”

“Right! Mona, stand back. Priestess, we need you in here!”

Joker’s voice snaps Amal out of her trance. She blinks, not fully registering the request. “Y-You want me to…to fight Goro?”

“Mona needs time to recharge! You’re our best healer.” Joker says, pleading with Amal. “Please, Priestess.”

“…R-Right!”

Amal glances at her friend, April, one last time before joining Joker in the fight.

As the fight goes on, with Joker, Queen and Fox throwing their strongest attacks at Goro, Amal focuses on healing the team and keeping their SP high enough for them to use their moves. She glances at Goro inbetween her moves, and after a while of fighting notices that he hasn’t directed a hit at her even once.

“Priestess, you’re up!”

Amal looks at her teammates. She notices that Fox and Queen were out of breath, clearly hurt. She takes a deep breath, calling forth her Persona. “Faye! Mediarahan!”

As soon as she says that, a soft glow falls over all her teammates. Now fully healed, Queen casts an extension on their defense up, and Fox throws another attack at Goro.

“Ngh…Damn…” Goro chuckles. “So…neither of us had shown our true strengths, huh…?”

“Goro, please!!” Amal shouts, placing a hand over her heart. “Please, stop this! You’re hurt! We can still fix this. You can still be good! We don’t have to fight each other…!”

“…Don’t underestimate me!” Goro yells, calling forth his Persona, who attacks them with an all-attacking move.  Joker and Queen dodge, while Amal and Fox get hit. While Fox regains his balance quickly, Amal gets crticially hit, falling down to her knees. “Ngh..!”

“Am-ugh. One hit and you’re already on your knees? Pathetic.” Goro growls. Though Joker didn’t miss the slight panic in his eyes when he hit Amal. Amal, however, didn’t hear nor see it. She wasn’t even looking at him. Joker hoped she could get up quickly.

“Come on guys, stay focused!” Futaba shouts, giving the party a boost in all areas. “You’re close!”

“Mona, get in here! Queen, get a breather!” Joker shouts, and the two quickly switch places. Once in, Mona calls forth Zorro and attacks Goro with a Wind move, making the young man kneel over, his free hand flying up to his torso.

“Damn it…!” he falls to his knees, still holding his torso. Amal, meanwhile, pulls herself back up to her feet.

“So he’s able to turn people psychotic…I thought it was some special thing like the Nav, but it seems to be his own Persona’s power.” Morgana says, watching Goro’s moves carefully.

“I can’t believe that the ability to control and drive others mad was born from within his heart…” Makoto comments sadly. Clearly, this ordeal wasn’t how she wanted this to go.

Meawhile, Goro pulls himself up to his knees. “I’ll kill you…you’re all gonna die…!” he falls over, holding himself up with his arms. Amal notices him breathing heavily. Her instinct tells her to go over and heal him, but she knows she can’t. He wouldn’t let her even if Joker let her.

“Will you please stop?! You’re fighting the wrong people!” Ann yells, trying to beat some sense into him. “We both hate the same guy! Why do we have to go against eachother?!”

“She’s right, Goro.” April says, her voice heard clearly in the silence even though she didn’t raise it much. “We’re friends. We should be fighting Shido together, not fighting one another. That’s…probably what he wants.”

Makoto shakes her head in disapproval. “Killing us won’t make you happy.”

“But…I…!” Goro gasps, still balancing himself on his arms and knees.

“This ain’t about what Shido says! You’re your own person! You gotta know that!” Ryuji’s words surprise Amal. She wasn’t expecting him to say that to Goro. Though, she should have known. Ryuji thought of Goro as a friend too, after all.

“Damn it..!” Goro yells, punching the floor with his fist. Amal looks away. This was too painful to watch.

“You know…sometimes I think about that fake Medjed that you guys made up…” Futaba says, calmly. “That was the worst trap…but if not for that, I don’t think I’d be here right now.” She pauses, “Uhh, basically…it doesn’t matter where you start over!”

“And…you don’t really hate Joke, do you?” Morgana asks, looking timidly over at Goro. “That smile before we fought…isn’t that how you really feel?

“Ugh…!?”

“Follow your true feelings! Even if you think people hate you or don’t want you around, that’s—“

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Goro shouts, slamming both his fists on the floor. “Teammates?! Friends?! To hell with that!” he pushes himself up to his feet, shakily. Amal looks over, and it’s clear to her that he’s barely standing.

“Why am I inferior to you…?! I was extremely particular about my life, my grades, my public image, so someone would want me around!” he grabs his face, shaking his head. “I am an ace detective…a celebrity!”

“Akechi-kun…” Haru, who hasn’t spoken until now, whispers. Amal can’t help it anymore, her eyes fill with tears at the sound of Goro’s voice. It just sounded so broken to her, to sad…she didn’t know what else to do. How could she help him understand?

“But you…you’re just some criminal trash living in an attic! So how…?! How does someone like you have things I don’t!? How can such a worthless piece of trash be more special than me?!”

“Akechi, you need to stop.” Joker tells him calmly. Amal doubted that made Goro feel any better.

Hearing that statement, Goro laughs. “This argument is meaningless…!”

Just then, for a moment, Goro’s entire self flashes. For a second, his white clothes turn black, as well as his red mask, before he becomes normal again.

“What was that?!” Makoto gasps.

“A black mask..!”

“Then, what Kaneshiro said before…”

“So…”Makoto begins. “You were behind the mental shutdowns after all…”

Goro chuckles. “Oh, this is great…I’m surprised. This is actually a first for me. I might even have to try my hardest against you.” He smirks. “You know…I just came up with a fun little idea…I wonder how far I can go with this…”

“Fun…?” Makoto mutters, eyes narrowing. What was he planning?

Red light surrounds Goro as a Persona emerges above him. It sat in the air, one leg thrown over the other with its head resting in the palm of its right hand. It had black and white striped clothes, as well as two long black and white horns.

“Again…! It’s that Persona!” Yusuke says, studying it. He feels something bump into his back and looks behind him, seeing his girlfriend’s face burrowed in his back. His gaze softens, he hated how negatively this whole ordeal was making April feel. “…Are you alright, April?”

“I’m scared, Yusuke.” April whispers, though Yusuke can still hear her. “That ‘Loki’ persona is…scary. That’s not Goro.”

“I’m sorry, April.” Yusuke turns back towards Goro. “Please, stay behind me if it makes you feel safer. I shall try to keep my movement to a minimum.”

“Thank you.”

Amal stares, wide-eyed, as Goro’s white clothes slowly become engulfed in darkness. It consumes him from his feet to his head, and Haru steps back next to her. “What’s going on!?”

“Don’t make me laugh!” Goro barks, his gloved hands now covered in black armor, his fingers scraping his face. “Justice? Righteous!? Keep that shit to yourselves! You and your teammates piss me off!”

“He can use two separate powers?!” Morgana shouts. “Then everything…even his appearance was a fake!”

“You’re going down…I’ll destroy you…” he grabs his head, shaking it left and right as Loki floats behind him. “Go down with me!”

“No way!”

“That bastard…he made himself go psychotic!”

Amal stares in horror as Goro’s entire outfit changes. He leans back, laughing maniacally before straightening back up, his red mask now turned black. Even from far away, Amal could see the crazy look in his eyes behind the mask. It hurt to watch.

“Now! Let’s see you drop dead one at a time, in front of your precious friends!”

“Dammit, he’s lost it. Here comes!”

“Diiiiieee!!!” Goro shouts, and immediately lunges at Joker. “I will kill you! Destroy you! Crush you…! Teammates are nothing but trash!”

“His new Persona’s power is unknown…everyone, stay on guard!” Futaba shouts, and Joker gets into fighting position. “Priestess, sub out. Ann, get in here!”

“What?!” Amal gasps. “W-Why?!”

“You can’t fight him like this. Sub out.”

“But-“

“Priestess. Now.” Joker glances at her. Amal notices the pitying look in his eyes. “I know this is hard for you. Let us handle it.”

“Joker…” Amal bows her head. “Right. Ann, if you could?”

“Leave it to me!”

Amal steps back, out of reach of the attacks flying about. She takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.

Watching Goro go psychotic hurt. Was it her fault? If she had paid more attention…would she had noticed how hurt Goro was? Was this even her fault?

No…no it wasn’t. But it was still hard to not blame oneself. Especially when you thought you knew a person well when clearly, you didn’t know them that well at all.

Did she ever know Goro? Or was the Goro she knew all a façade? No…that couldn’t be true. The laughs, the smiles he showed her when they were alone…they all felt so, so real. And the way he blushed, his ears burning red when she kissed him…that couldn’t have all been fake. It just couldn’t.

But then…why was he doing all of this? Why was he hurting himself, when he could’ve joined them? Was his need for recognition by his father so deeply rooted that he didn’t realize when he was recognized by those around him?

More importantly…why couldn’t Amal stop these tears from falling?

“Yagh..!”

Amal’s head snaps up, eyes trained on Goro. The boy was leaning back, his arms dangling by his sides. He glared at Joker, rage in his eyes. “You’re just…pieces of shit…who lick each other’s wounds…!” he tilts his head. “Anything goes…if you say you’re teammates…!”

The Thieves continue fighting Goro a while longer until Makoto hits him with a particularly strong attack. He stumbles back, coughing. Amal notices that he’s looking straight at her. “Why are you…looking at me like that…!? I’ve…I’ve succeeded until now…all by myself…!” he cries. “I don’t need…teammates…I don’t…need you pitying me!” he roars, his gaze returning back to Joker. Amal could see his glare from as far back as she stood. She couldn’t imagine being on the receiving end of that glare.

The fighting didn’t continue long after that outburst. In a few minutes, Joker’s attack hit Goro who, with a painful scream, dropped to the floor face down.

“Goro!”

Before anyone can stop her, Amal runs over to the fallen figure, kneeling down next to him. She helps him up to his knees, though he shakes her hands off of him, gasping for air.

“You ready to call it quits?” Ryuji asks softly, and Amal is thankful that no one tries to pull her away from him.

“I know…I’ve had enough.” He looks down. “…You’re so lucky.” He breathes shakily. “Lucky to be surrounded…by teammates who acknowledge you…and once Shido confesses his crimes, you’ll all be heroes. As for me, people will find out my past deductions were just a charade. My fame and trust will vanish.” He laughs, softly. Amal places a hand on his shoulder and squeezes. He doesn’t shove her away this time.

“…I see.” Mona nods. “So you were turning people psychotic, then solving the cases yourself. And you did that by joining forces with Shido.”

Goro can’t help but chuckle. “In the end…I couldn’t be special.”

“That’s not true.” Amal whispers, but Ryuji’s voice is louder. “Dude…you’re more than special.”

Makoto nods, hugging her arm. “It pains me to admit…but your wit and strength far exceeds ours. We only defeated you by teaming up…I was honestly…envious of your natural ability. It was frustrating to see how much my sister trusted you…”

“I have no intention of forgiving you for what you did to my father, but…” Haru looks down. “I sympathize with you. I wholeheartedly understand wanting to get back at the adults who took from you.”

“But when you gained the power to fulfill that desire,” Yusuke begins. “You only used it for your own self-benefit.”

“If you have the ability to use multiple Personas, you probably have the same talents as Joker.” Futaba says, gesturing to their leader. “But because you went through life alone, the power you awakened was fueled by lies and hate. Still, you thought that was enough, right…? That part, I totally get.”

“You excelled at everything over us…” Yusuke praised, “Yet that was the one thing you lacked.”

“You’ve said that teammates are worthless but Goro…”April looks at him, not with pity but with sadness. “You were lonely all along. You like everyone here, and you want to be friends with them. You want to have teammates…it’s just that your fears got the better of you.”

“……”

Ryuji fist pumps the air. “All right, let’s go back and get that callin’ card ready!” he rolls his shoulder, looking straight at Goro. “We’re gonna take Shido down. What are you gonna do?”

“It’d be a problem if you kept getting in our way…” Ann smiles. “Wanna come along and help us settle things?”

Goro stares at them in disbelief. “Are you all idiots? You should get rid of me…if you don’t want me getting in your way.”

“Don’t be stupid.” Amal tells him, looking straight into his eyes. “You’re our friend, Goro…whether you believe it or not, everyone here considers you someone worth keeping around. We _want_ you here, Goro. Please, come with us.”

Said brunette chuckles. “…You all are truly beyond my comprehension.”

Suddenly, the whole group safe from Amal, who was still kneeling next to Goro, glance over to the left. When Amal notices and looks back, she gasps. “What the…!?”

“Akechi..?” Ryuji says, disbelief clear both under the mask and in his voice.

“Another one?!” Yusuke mumbles, “Wait, is he…”

“That’s…Shido’s cognitive version of Akechi!”

The cognitive Akechi chuckles, slowly raising a gun aimed at Goro’s head. He glances at the Phantom Thieves. “…I’ll deal with the rest of you later.”

Goro flinches, and Amal’s attention is immediately on him. “Faye, please!”

 

Amal’s Persona huffs. _Why do you want to help this fool?_

_Please, Faye. I need to help him._

_Hmph…fine. But only because I like you so much._

Amal places her hands over Goro, letting her Persona’s ability flow through her so that she can heal him.

Cognitive Akechi looks back at Goro, seemingly ignoring the kneeling girl before him. “Captain Shido’s orders…He has no need for losers.” He sighs. “Well…this just moves the plan up a little. He was going to get rid of you after the election anyway.”

“What…!?” Goro gasps, though the sudden movement makes him flinch.

C!Akechi shakes his head. “Did you truly believe you’d be spared after all the murders you undertook? Don’t tell me…were you actually feeling good about having someone rely on you for once?” he tilts his head. “Oh, by the way…the captain says it’s time you receive retribution for causing the mental shutdowns.”

“What the hell, man!? That bastards the one who put him up to it!” Ryuji yells, enraged. Rightly so. Amal was just about fed up with this as well.

While Ryuji glares at the fake Akechi, Goro stands up, chuckling. He takes Amal’s hands and pulls them away, though not without squeezing them gently. “I see. I was wondering how he’d protect himself if I used my power to tear through his Palace. Turns out you’re how. So he’s making a puppet to kill me…sounds like something he’d do.”

C!Akechi nods, the gun never leaving Goro. “That’s right. I’ll do anything. But look at yourself…you’re the true puppet.”

Goro grits his teeth, but says nothing.

The cognitive Akechi smirks wickedly. “You wanted to be acknowledged, didn’t you? To be loved? You’ve been nothing but a puppet from the very beginning.”

Ryuji growls. “You little…!”  

“So this…is how Shido thinks of Goro Akechi…” Makoto notes. “It’s…It’s too horrible!”

“It’s still not too late!” Haru pipes in. “We can still change his heart together! Even if he’s your father…no, because he’s your father!”

“What’s all this nagging about…?” C!Akechi growls dangerously, glaring at Haru. “Want me to take care of you first?”

As soon as he says that, four shadows appear behind him, Amal and Goro. Ann is the first to gasp. “No…he’s not alone! He has Shadows too…!?”

“You know what?” C!Akechi decides. “I’ll let someone volunteer to take his place. Who knows, you might delay his death.”

“Damn you…!”

C!Akechi smirks. “You guys are all about doing things for others, aren’t you? Oh, that’s just the same as me. I’m going to take all the blame for our captain. I’ll die for him too.”

“This…is what Shido thinks of Akechi-kun, even after making him help with the murders..?!” Makoto shouts, disbelief written all over her face. Amal knew that this was something she couldn’t comprehend. She couldn’t either, if she was honest.

C!Akechi turns his attention back to Goro. “Here, I’ll give you one last chance. Shoot them.”

Goro, who had stood silently for a while now, laughs quietly. “…I was such a fool.” He straightens out, aiming a gun at Joker and the rest. C!Akechi smiles.

“Yes…that’s the you our captain wishes to see.”

“Hoho…don’t misunderstand.” Goro glances at his cognitive copy from the corner of his eye. “You’re the one that’s going to disappear!” he turns, shooting his gun at the other him at the same moment that C!Akechi shoots him. The only thing Amal can do is scream before C!Akechi drops to his knees.

Goro aims his gun at the emergency button, shooting it. Beeping sounds immediately follow, red lights beeping all around the room. A female voice comes from the speakers unseen to the group. “The watertight bulkhead door has closed. All personnel within the partition wall, evacuate at once.”

As soon as the female’s voice fades, a giant thick wall rises from the ground, dividing Goro and the Phantom Thieves.

“Whoa, what is this?!”

Ryuji bangs on the wall. “Akechi!”

From the other side, Goro’s voice is heard. “Hurry up and go.”

“You fool! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!” Yusuke shouts, distressed. April meanwhile looks around. “Amal…?”

“The real fools…are you guys. You should have just abandonded me here a long time ago…you would have all perished…if you had tried to face these with me weighing you down…”

Goro coughs, and Amal quickly walks over to him, placing a hand on his back. “Goro?”

Seemingly only now realizing this, Goro’s eyes snap up to Amal. “A-Amal?! Why are you here?!” he coughs into his hand, wincing. “Why…why aren’t you on the other side of the wall?!”

“Amal?! Amal, you’re there?! Oh, my god…oh my god. Amal, are you okay?!”

Hearing April’s distressed voice, Amal chooses to ignore Goro’s shock for a second to calm her friend. “April, I’m okay. The Shadows aren’t attacking us…and the cognitive Goro seems to be badly hurt. Just go on without me.”

“Are you out of your mind?! I’m not leaving you here!”

“Please, April. I’ll be fine, I swear. I’ll just take Goro out of here and come back.”

Goro’s eyes widen. She wasn’t serious, was she? “You’re crazy! You can’t mean that!”

Amal glares at the brunette. “Oh shut up. I’ve been listening to you monologue for so long now. You didn’t think for a _second_ about my feelings when you were spewing all that crap about not needing teammates or friends. So now, please kindly _shut up_ and let me calm down my friends!”

“Amal.” Joker’s voice is heard loud and clear, even without him raising it. “Are you sure you’re okay? We can find a way to get to you if we try.”

“Joker, you can’t be serious! We _have to get to her now!_ ” April’s distressed voice shouts. Even without seeing her, Amal can imagine what her friend looks like right now. It hurts her to think about it.

“April…” Amal starts, slowly. She wonders how to best phrase this. “Please….please listen. I’ll be fine. The most dangerous things are up ahead. I’ll take Goro back to LeBlanc and come right back. I promise.”

“No! I’m not going!”

“April, _please trust me!”_ Amal shouts, desperately. “I’m begging you! I can’t leave Goro behind.”

“Come now, April. We should all trust Amal.”

“Not you too, Yusuke! This is Amal we’re talking about! We have to get her over here!”

“Amal..Akechi-kun…” Makoto calls out. “Please…stay safe.”

Goro breathes heavily, “Let’s make a deal…OK? You won’t say no…will you?”

“Why at a time like this..!?” Yusuke questions. Amal decides to stay quiet.

“Change Shido’s heart…in my stead…End his crimes…Please!”

Amal can’t see him, but Amal knows that Joker nods on the other side of the wall. “I promise.”

Goro nods, relaxing. He leans against Amal, taking a deep breath.

Meanwhile, C!Akechi stands up, holding his wound as he glares at his copy, his gun aimed at Goro. “You bastard…!”

“So…” Goro laughs, aiming his own gun at the cognitive him. “My final enemy is a puppet version of myself…not bad.”

“Akechi-kun…! Amal!”

April slams her fists against the wall. “Dammit is there no way over there?! Can’t we do something?!”

Just then, the group hears three shots going off. Everyone gasps. Morgana steps closer to the wall, concerned.

“…His signal…it’s…” Futaba gasps. “He’s still there!”

On the other side of the wall, Cognitive Akechi lays on the floor, lifeless. A bullet hole is engraved in the wall behind Goro and Amal, who was holding her own gun, that she had fired at Cognitive Akechi’s hand so that his aim would be off. She stands there, hands shaking. The gun falls to the ground.

“A-Amal? Please, please tell me you’re okay. Oh, god...A-Amal!”

“I’m fine, April. We both are. The only one who isn’t fine is Cognitive Akechi.” Amal leans against the wall, and she can almost feel her friends’ hands on the other side. “Please…go on ahead. I promise I’ll catch up.”

“…Alright everyone! We need to take care of Shido! We can’t let a criminal like him run loose!” Morgana shouts, and there are murmurs of agreement. Amal can hear footsteps walk away, but before she completely relaxes, she hears April’s voice again.

“…You’re getting an earful when we’re back.”

Amal smiles, “Hang in there until I’m back, eh?”

April doesn’t reply, but Amal hears footsteps leave. Once she is sure no one is there, she glances over to Goro, who had slid down the wall to the floor. “Well, come on, you suicidal idiot.” She grins. “Let’s get you out.”

“You’re…such an idiot.” He mutters. “Why…why did you run over to me right after I was beaten? What kind of idiot…” he laughs. “What kind of absolute moron are you?”

“Well…” she begins, kneeling in front of Goro. She pulls his helmet-like mask off, revealing his dishelved hair. “I might be an idiot…even a moron.” She reaches a hand out, brushing Goro’s hair out of his face. “But I’m the moron that has fallen for you.”

Goro snorts, but she could see the blush on his cheeks. “Ridiculous. You fell for the detective Goro. Not me.”

“Oh, really?” Amal laughs bitterly. “Then why, pray tell, am I still here?”

“How should I know?”

“Are you telling me you don’t feel the same?”

Goro doesn’t answer. Instead, he looks anywhere but at her.

“I think you feel the same. I noticed, you know. You didn’t attack me once.” Amal pointed out. “And you got worried when you did attack me. What kind of villain are you?”

Goro chuckles. “A pathetic one, I assume.”

“Exactly. Glad we agree.” She smiles. “And Goro?”

“What?”

Amal leans in, pressing her lips to his. She holds them there, and even though her eyes are closed, she knows Goro’s are wide open in shock.

After a couple of seconds, she pulls back and grins. “No matter what you think. No matter what anyone says or does…please know this.” She cups his cheeks, staring him straight in the eyes. “You’re important to me. And I want you around. All of you. I don’t care if what you acted like before was a bluff, because I love you. The real you. The one who sacrificed himself to save the friends he kept trying to prove to himself weren’t people he considered friends. The person who blushed when I kissed him the first time, the person that got a twinkle in his eye every time I took him to eat pancakes.” She smiles. “So, please…never assume no one wants you around. Because even if the world turns against you…I still want you. With all my heart. Understand?”

Goro blinks, and tears well up in his eyes. Amal knows she’s crying, too. “Thank you, Amal.”

“No problem. Now come on, let’s get you to LeBlanc. After all, I want to get back in time to kick Shido’s ass for you. Can’t let the others get all the glory, now can I?”

Goro chuckles, even though it hurts to laugh. “No…no you definitely can’t.”

And as Amal helps him up to his feet and takes them back to the real world, Goro can’t help but be grateful to whatever god or demon or celestial being that was responsible for him meeting her and the Phantom Thieves

Because if it wasn’t for her…if it wasn’t for the Phantom Thieves…he wouldn’t have a place in this world. But now he knew…he did.


End file.
